Ministry Needs, Prayer Opportunities

Middle East

I mentioned earlier a country in the Middle East where followers of Christ are  asking for training for Christian radio stations operating in this mostly Muslim land. While religious and ethnic conflict has been part of their DNA for centuries, evangelical believers are presenting the claims of Christ, the Prince of Peace to their land. Because of the sensitivity of their work, we won’t mention the country here, but know that it is a place where God is at work in spite of the opposition. Prominent leaders and everyday people are putting their hope in Christ as they hear of God’s love and salvation through His Son, Jesus.

Pray for Christian broadcasters and evangelical believers who are boldly presenting the Gospel. And pray for our discernment and wisdom to know the Lord’s will for MEDIAlliance in providing training for these broadcasters.

Turkey

Our time at the NRB Convention in Nashville gave me opportunity to sit down with several ministries we have been connected with through the years. Radio Shema in Ankara, Turkey is led by Soner Tufan. We visited with him and with his American assistant, Sarah Wibberly in Nashville, to learn of the current needs for this ministry. Radio Shema is in a significant location in the capital city, with studios in downtown Ankara. Some security issues are causing them to look for a better location for their Christian radio station.

Radio Shema also continues to look for Christian radio programs to enhance their schedule, needing creative programs that translate well into the Turkish culture. Soner wants to grow the influence of the station by expanding into producing a newspaper, which are quite popular among legislators and those in leadership in that country. It will also help promote the radio, pointing readers to the daily input of Christian programs.

France

Radio Gospel, part of the ministry France For Christ, continues to seek an FM frequency for Paris. About 20% of the population of France live in Paris, so a station there would have great impact in that country. This has been an enormous challenge, but Paul and Laura Harrigan continue their efforts. A recent newsletter pointed out some facts about France, showing why they continue the effort:

• Only 4 ½ % of the French people regularly attend a church service- whether it is in a Catholic or Protestant church.
• France has the highest population in Europe of followers of Islam and Judaism? Between 8 – 10 % of the French population claims they are Muslim.
• According to an article in 2011 in the Economist, the suicide rate in France is 14.6/100; in other words, more than two times greater than the rate in Great Britain and 40 % higher than in Germany and the U.S.

Paul Harrigan believes that when revival of the Christian faith comes to France, the impact will be felt world-wide due to its influence in the European Union and in the 29 countries where French is the official language.

Gospel Radio continues to upgrade their programming online even as they explore new avenues to secure a radio frequency in Paris. Pray for this ongoing effort.

Bolivia

Radio Mosoj Chaski in Cochabamba, Bolivia, continues to impact hundreds of thousands of lives among the Quechua Indians in the Andes Mountains and the cities and villages of this South American country. We visited with Ann Wheeler with Mosoj Chaski, and learned that the ministry is taking steps to position the station in such a way as to help ensure its continuation, even in the face of political and cultural pressure.

Mosoj Chaski is also starting to produce DVD’s of Bible studies and other programs. Often the little one or two room homes high in the mountains will have a small color TV and DVD player. Television signals don’t reach into the area, so the DVD’s provide entertainment, education, and insight for these who live simple but difficult lives.

Pray for needed equipment and training to produce these television programs. Pray for wisdom and direction for Radio Mosoj Chaski as they upgrade and replace aging broadcast equipment, including their transmitter.

Haiti

Radio 4VEH in Cap Haitian, Haiti, continues their history of making an impact for the Gospel since its start in 1961. Storley Michel is the director of Radio 4VEH, and is being used by the Lord to make this long-standing ministry more effective and more financially stable. The ministry operates several frequencies from the northern part of the island nation into the central region. It is a much needed lighthouse in the midst of spiritual darkness.

MEDIAlliance International is talking with this ministry and looking at a possible radio training conference in Haiti in 2014.

India

Building upon the foundation of our first experience last September, MEDIAlliance will partner with Good News Television and other groups to hold another media training conference. This year’s event will be held in Delhi, and is expected to draw over 200 media professionals for a series of workshops in television, radio, Internet/social media, and management. As in previous conferences, we will have top Christian media professionals serve as our faculty. Pray for these plans, for the prosepctive instructors, and for those in India who need to attend.

In addition, we’ll be in India in May to assist those in that country as they work to form a Christian media association. Their desire is to have a unified voice for evangelical broadcasters as they speak to legislators and regulators in India. Pray for God’s wisdom and direction in this effort.

Romania

One of the joys of this ministry is getting to know God’s great servants in other parts of the world. Now, working together through the years, the Lord has forged great friendships and partnerships with His leaders in Christian media. The investment of our work in the Balkans has yielded such relationships. In Romania we work with Lucian Despa of Radio Voice of the Gospel (RVE) headquartered in Bucharest. With nine stations scattered across Romania, RVE is taking God’s Word to many listeners, growing stronger disciples in this former Communist country. Lucian is looking at new strategies for distributing the programming, even as he seeks to grow the number of stations. Pray for these initiatives for Radio Voice of the Gospel.

Tudor and Mirela Petan lead Alfa Omega Television, based in Timisoara, Romania. From their three-story broadcast center, Alfa Omega uses satellite, cable, and the internet to distribute many Christian programs to the Romanian people, both inside the country and beyond. In addition, because the ministry is uniquely positioned in the center of the Balkans, Alfa Omega desires to add additional channels for the many other languages spoken in the neighboring countries. The prayer need for them is for funding to meet the equipment needs to accomplish this, and for other broadcast ministries to use these new channels to reach many people throughout the Balkans.

As we met with Tudor and Mirela at the NRB convention, one of their main desires was to pray for our new MEDIAlliance International ministry, and to see how they might help us. This same spirit was expressed by many of our international partners. I can tell you it is very moving to have such support from those we serve around the world!

Albania and Kosovo

We have detailed in previous newsletter some of the struggles encountered by Radio 7 as they established a radio station in the Kosovar capital of Pristina. But the Lord is working in amazing ways, opening the heart of even Muslims in media to put Christian programming on television in Kosovo. Though they are Muslim, they recognize that Christian teaching builds moral foundations, not found in other religions, that will help their children and young people in their daily lives.

Pray for Enkelejda Kumaraku of Radio 7, and their staff, as they continue to minister in both Kosovo and Albania, seizing every opportunity available to proclaim God’s Truth in these spiritually needy regions.